Startups (1)

• Steve announces Presidio Bitcoin will host a hub for hack-nation.ai, a global hackathon in April, where Spiral is sponsoring a challenge focused on AI agents earning money via the Bitcoin Lightning Network.

Big Tech (1)

• Max notes that Anthropic's revenue growth is substantial, potentially outpacing Google and the U.S. federal government, raising questions about the future power dynamics between AI companies and nation-states.

Protocol (6)

• The sovereign individual thesis, advocating for individual power through technology like cryptography, faces a challenge if advanced AI centralizes capabilities, especially around violence and cyberattacks.
• Presidio Bitcoin released its Quantum Readiness Report, an open-source, living document on GitHub designed to provide a balanced, comprehensive, and investor-friendly overview of quantum computing threats to Bitcoin.
• The report outlines various scenarios for quantum threat timelines, ranging from two years to never, and proposes a plan for Bitcoin's resilience, including the potential to move 80-20% of vulnerable coins in a day.
• Lalu prototyped a quantum-safe transaction method for Bitcoin that does not require consensus changes, utilizing a hashing algorithm to protect coins, though it incurs a cost of approximately $150 per UTXO.
• This prototype results in non-standard transactions that are not automatically relayed by the Bitcoin network, requiring centralized services or direct miner agreements for inclusion.
• Daniel Burr proposed a method using Taproot's script scheme to signal quantum proofing, potentially allowing users to opt-in for future quantum-resistant upgrades to their Taproot-based coin spending paths.

AI & Tech (3)

• DK highlights that Anthropic recently 'nerfed' its public models, causing user dissatisfaction and questioning whether its lead over competitors like Google and OpenAI is sustainable or due to unsustainable margins.
• Max and DK discuss the emerging risk for companies that become dependent on a single AI model provider, facing potential feature reductions or price hikes without control, emphasizing the need for multi-model strategies.
• Google's recent paper suggesting quantum computing can accelerate AI is seen as a significant development, potentially increasing investment and compressing the timeline for viable quantum computers.

War (1)

• Iran's 2025 crypto transaction volume was $8-11 billion, with researchers noting millions moved from Iranian exchanges after strikes.

ETFs (2)

• Since the Iran war started February 28, 2026, IBIT gained 11.75% while SPY fell 0.6%, gold fell 9.6%, and silver fell 18.72%.
• Morgan Stanley plans tokenized money market funds and crypto tax strategies after launching its Bitcoin ETF, aiming to expand beyond Bitcoin.

Custody (2)

• Garrett Dutton lost 5.9 Bitcoin ($420,000) to a fake Ledger app on the App Store, part of a pattern targeting Ledger users.
• Bennett advocates for Cold Card over Ledger, citing Ledger's repeated hacks and scams, and notes Cold Card's open-source design.

Markets (1)

• Bitget launched Pre-SPECS token offering retail exposure to SpaceX's $1.75 trillion IPO, but grants no equity, voting rights, or ownership.

Stablecoins (2)

• Jeremy Allaire defended Circle's decision not to freeze USDC in the Drift exploit, citing legal obligation and moral quandary unless law enforcement directs action.
• WLE threatens legal action against Justin Sun after he accused the Trump-linked project of treating users as ATMs over a $75 million stablecoin loan.

Protocol (4)

• Marty highlights Iran's existing Bitcoin mining operations, noting it offers an efficient way for energy-rich, sanctioned countries to monetize their energy resources directly.
• Matt notes France made a $12 billion profit on the gold trade and suggests the repatriation highlights gold's limitations in verifiability and transferability compared to Bitcoin.
• BitChat was banned in China, which Marty considers a positive signal for the freedom technology project; its Android app has accumulated 3.2 million downloads since launching on July 6, 2023.
• Marty argues that the ethical stance of Bitcoin maximalism has been compromised by the embrace of MicroStrategy's (MSTR) treasury products, which he likens to 'shitcoins' when viewed through a non-Wall Street lens.

Macro (1)

• France repatriated 129 tons of gold by selling reserves in New York and repurchasing them in Europe, citing concerns over counterparty risk with foreign holdings.

Nostr (1)

• OpenSats has issued its 16th wave of Nostr grants, committing 100% of donations to open-source contributors, supporting projects like Amethyst Desktop and Hamster, which utilizes ham radio for Nostr communication.

Politics (1)

• Marty notes the Iranian government has blocked its people from global internet access for 41 days during conflict, making alternative communication tools like Starlink, local mesh networks, and ham radio critical.

AI & Tech (2)

• Block released Sprout, a Nostr-based open-source relay for AI agents, and Mesh LLM, which enables users to pool spare GPU capacity via Nostr to create an OpenAI-compatible API for open-source models.
• Anthropic ceased OpenClaude subscription access, forcing users to its API where Marty's estimated costs for his The Financial Times project saw a 15x increase, reaching $3,000 per month.